Irwin Leads the Way at Oulton Park

Oulton Park, the second round of the 2024 Bennetts British Superbike Championship roared into action today at the undulating Oulton Park circuit. Under cloudy but dry conditions, the superbike field took to the track for their first two free practice sessions.

In the opening FP1 session, it was Glenn Irwin who set the early pace aboard his Ducati, posting a 1:34.053 lap time. Jason O’Halloran, Ryan Vickers, and Leon Haslam gave chase, slotting into the top four positions. However, the session was plagued by numerous track limits violations, with many riders having lap times disallowed for exceeding the limits or course cutting at the notorious Turns 10-12 complex.

As the afternoon FP2 session got underway, Irwin reasserted his dominance, blazing to an incredible 1:33.622 – the outright fastest time of the day. Honda’s Tommy Bridewell, Vickers, and Haslam completed the top four in that session, with more track limits infractions continuing to hamper some riders’ progress.

When the combined times were calculated, it was the Ducati pilot Irwin who led the way overall with his FP1 time of 1:34.053. Bridewell, Vickers, the BMW-mounted Haslam, and Ducati’s Christian Iddon rounded out the top five ahead of tomorrow’s crucial qualifying session.

Top 10 Combined Times:

1. Glenn Irwin (Ducati) – 1:34.053
2. Tommy Bridewell (Honda) – 1:34.452
3. Ryan Vickers (Yamaha) – 1:34.216
4. Leon Haslam (BMW) – 1:34.419
5. Christian Iddon (Ducati) – 1:34.566
6. Jason O’Halloran (Kawasaki) – 1:34.172
7. Danny Kent (Yamaha) – 1:34.340
8. Storm Stacey (Kawasaki) – 1:35.006
9. Rory Skinner (BMW) – 1:35.243
10. Kyle Ryde (Yamaha) – 1:34.312

While the on-track action was intense, there was one significant incident as Louis Valleley’s NP Racing Kawasaki suffered an engine failure, causing the rider to crash out of FP2. Aside from Valleley’s unfortunate exit, no other major incidents were reported through the day’s two sessions.